Thomas County cat. [volume] (Colby, Kan.) 1885-1891, 1887-10-13
been vigorous. but they would not
have swerved the Captain. As it was.

been vigorous. but they would MOI
have swerved the Captain. As it was,
the unexpected turn seemed to give the
Major new lease of life. In an in
slant he had resolved to live-he who
a moment before had hidden his friend
goodbye forever. Astride the Cap
tain's horse he seemed to get yet an
other lease of life, and all this stood
him in good stead. The troops, tired
and despirited as they were, moved
rapidly on the road. and the Majors
horse kept pace with them. Long be-
fore the night was gone Major Cation
was safe in an ambulance and up on the
way to Chattanooga with not thought
Of any thing but rest and sleep.
And Captain Milney? Why. the
captain Jared badly: He had already
been too much about on his injured
foot. and it was swollen and stiff. He
started to hobble after his men. bat it
was so hard that in half an hour he
gave it up and lay down by the road
side. mile or two behind the rear
most OF the retreating soldiers. 1t
seemed almost rs if Major Cation S
new life and spirit had been distracted
from the captains store, leaving the
latter ambitionless and dcspairing.
Il am whipped"' he said to himself,
as he lay down and gave up to weari-
ness and pain. am whipped; but not
by the enemy back there. No; a
woman did itr'
At daylight next morning Captain
Milney was wounded prisoner of
war, bound for some Southern mill
tary prison. Il am whipped, he said,
as on the night before, and prepared
as well as he could to take it philo-
sophically.
Seven or eight months afterward the
captain awoke one morning from the
delirium of a long fever. He was in
hospital near Washington. When he
first became conscious things about
him looked almost % strange as the
fantastic visions Of that dream-haunted
fever land from which he had just
emerged. All things strange, except
-ah! except the female figure at the
side of his cot. That was familiar
enough; it was Nina Clark. She was
reading, and he had been looking at
her and wondering dreamily for some
time before she turned her head and
that ha 10 Than no
asked the question that was uppermost
in his mind.
''Where is Major-Major Galton?"
he asked.
ooh, Charley" she cried, glad tears
streaming from her eyes. you are
conscious again, thank God! You will
get well. dear! But the dreadful
things you have been saying while out
of your head. The Major is here, and
comes in every day to see you. But
You must not talk now, and l must
not talk to you. You are to take
good sip of this and then 90 TO sleep.
Not word now-only, Charley, if
any thing is in your head about Major
Galton-and--and Isuch as you've
been talking about in your fever, it's
all a mistake. Charley-a cruel, cruel
mistaken
Well, he found that out in the after
noon of the same day when he saw
Major Gallon and his wife-his wife,
who was not Nina Clark. He dis
covered that Mina's promise to the
Major--that promise which had SO ex-
allied the Major and so wrecked the
Captain-was simply promise to set
things right with Cations lady love,
who in his absence was being influ-
enced by an unworthy rival. Doing
this service involved for Nina the sac
rifice of some maiden pride and re-
serve. but ut the Majors urgent petit
ton, she did it, and even raised him
to the seventh heaven of happy anti
cipation by writing him her promise to
deliver his girl safe into his arms
whenever he came home
The Captain came to think that he
had jumped at a conclusion too quick
ly and that a little faith in the girl
whose solemn trOth he had would have
saved him il trip 10 Libby prison and
saved him also the fever which at
tackled him the very day his exchange
was effected. But then where would
the Major have been if the Last Man
at Chickamauga had not lent him "a
hOrse?-"R. L. f., la Cincinnati Com
merci0t Gazette.